piece of cake!

Short on time....

2009-07-19T06:33:00.000-07:00

Sigh..... Have been so busy with cake work lately that I have hardly had time to experiment with new ice cream flavours in the kitchen.

Tomorrow though, I shall have some leisure time to play about with – and I intend to try making Butter Pecan ice-cream. My dear friend Elaine LOVES anything with pecans in it. So this quest to make the perfect Butter Pecan ice cream shall be in honor of her. Wish me luck!

Ah! My mother liked the Ginger Ice cream so much that she made me make her 50 individual servings of the said flavour, for her to serve her friends at a luncheon.

Mom asked me to make her 200 servings of Ginger ice cream for a charity fair next month..... My answer to her was simply.... "you can borrow my ice cream maker and get your 'gang' to help you make the it'.

It's no fun when the ice cream machine's capacity is only 1.5 liters per go. One thing I have learned is that.... making ice cream for fun, is well.... really fun. But if you have to make a lot of it at one time because you HAVE to.... then it really becomes a pain in the butt.

Lemongrass & Ginger ice cream recipe

2009-07-05T05:49:00.000-07:00

PREPARING THE LEMONGRASS
Lemon Grass stalks
6, clean and crush the ends with the back of a knife handle
Water
8 cups
Sugar
3 cups

Pour water into a small pot and bring to a boil. Throw in lemongrass.
Turn heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
Add in sugar and gently boil, stirring constantly, until sugar has completely dissolved.
Set aside and allow to cool.

PREPARING THE GINGER JUICE
Fresh Old Ginger
Enough to get 1 full cup of ginger juice (add another 1/4 cup if you want it to have more kick)

Peel away skin. Cut into smaller pieces and thrown into a blender & whizz until it becomes a pulp.
Extract ginger juice.

MAKING THE ICE CREAM
Fresh milk 200 ml Whipping cream 350 mls
Lemongrass sugar syrup1 cup
Ginger Juice 1 cup Crystalized ginger candy 15 pcs, sliced thinly

Remove lemongrass from the sugar mixture. Pour all ingredients (except the crystalized ginger candy) into ice cream maker bucket. Mix Well.Taste the mixture. Add more sugar syrup accordingly. If mixture is too thick, add in more milk to thin it out a bit.
Remember that it should taste slightly sweeter than what you think is ‘just right’.Or else once it is frozen, it will taste bland. Follow though with your ice cream makers instructions.
Spoon into individual serving containers & sprinkle 1 tsp of sliced ginger candy into each serving. Give it quick stir with a chopstick to evenly distribute the ginger candy. Chill at least 2 hours before serving.
You should temper the ice cream by allowing it to stand for 5 t0 10 minutes before eating. This will allow the full flavour our the ice cream to come through.
Makes 1.5 litres of ice cream.

Meet my Maker....

2009-07-01T00:35:00.000-07:00

... My ice cream maker.

It's been almost 3 weeks and my obsession with making ice cream still hasn't dissipated.

Good.... This means....Money not wasted! : P

Soooo many people have been asking me what the machine looks like, how it works, etc. Well, taaaa-daaaaa!!!!! Here it is:

The Cuisineart Supreme Commercial Quality Ice Cream Maker.

This stainless steel box has a built-in compressor freezer. This does away with the pre-chilled/pre-frozen bowls of the smaller Ice cream making machines. It has a fully automatic 60 minute timer. And comes with a 1-5 liter capacity metal bucket.

It retails at RM2,399.00 at ESH outlets. You can buy extra metal buckets at RM80.00 each (ideally, you should have at least 2. Am thinking of getting a 3rd one soon)

I initially wanted to buy and try out a smaller, less-expensive machine (Kenwood brand). ESH sells them at RM299.00). But in the end, I figured that since my family are such serious ice-cream die-hards, it would make good sense to get the better quality, less-hassle-giving, machine – even if it did cost quite a bit more... (errrrmmmmm....okay. A LOT a bit more... )

And, I reasoned that since it comes from Cuisinart, I couldn't go wrong. By the way.... it also comes with a 5 year warranty on machine parts. : )

I have absolutely no regrets with my decision I use the ice cream maker at least 3 times weekly. And it consistently turns out fabulous, perfectly churned, ice cream! I don't know who loves it more. The kids or me.... ; ')

There are however, 3 things about it that can be better.

Here's the Wish-List (Are you paying attention? You people at Cuisinart Inc!...):

The plastic cover that goes over the ice cream bucket's slip-on lock-on is really very flimsy.

The first thing my husband said when he saw me try to fit it onto the churning arm was, "...that thing is going to break in no time flat!". And darn'it! He was right! ^%^$%#@$#%^

One of the lock-on edges chipped off on day 2! I was sooooooooooo disappointed. But happily, when I called ESH, they got in touch with the Cuisineart rep, who said that they would replace it for me. Apparently, there is a 'proper way' to attach the cover onto the churning arm. But the way I see it, it's just boils down to poor design and also the usage of the wrong material for the cover.

The noise-level of the running motor is too loud. But if 50 to 60 minutes of constant whrrrrrrrrrrrrrr-ing sounds don't bother you, then it's no big deal.

The bottom of the machine has 6 stands. The bottom surface of each stand has a fit-on rubber cover (there are a total of 6 stands). The rubber comes off really easily and they can actually crack. I found a cracked loose piece on my kitchen table top a week after I had bought the machine. Imagine my shock when I looked under the machine and discovered that ALL of the rubber fit-ons were missing, except for one! They couldn't have fallen off at my house... because I never found any of them (except for that one cracked piece). So it must have already been this way when I first took it out of the box.

Luckily, the unit doesn't move at all when it's at work (because it is so heavy). So I didn't call up to make a big fuss.But the lesson here is.... before you take your purchase home, flip it over and check that ALL the leg stands have their Rubber fit-ons.

The bottom line is that I really do like the machine very much – even if there are a few design flaws.

The Cuisinart showroom in in SS2 in PJ. With the purchase of the ice cream maker, you are entitled to a demo class (you can invite your friends go come along). Am planning to attend a demo and learn a few new tricks and recipes, sometime in the middle of July. If any of you want to come along, gimme a call and let me know, k? :D

Okay. have to go now..... I want to experiment on concocting something interesting.... Ginger and Lemongrass Ice cream!

Orange ice cream recipe

2009-06-26T07:36:00.001-07:00

Orange ice cream

Fresh squeezed orange juice

from 6 large oranges

Good quality marmalade

1/2 cup

Sugar syrup

1 + 1/2 cups

Milk

250 ml

Whipping cream

300 ml

Pour all the ingredients into a large blender and pulse until smooth.

Pour everything into the ice cream maker's container.

Taste the mixture before proceeding with the machine's instructions - make certain that the mixture is sweet enough.

Turn on the ice cream maker according to instructions.

Spoon into individual serving containers and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

Makes 1.5 liters of ice cream

Rum & Raisin ice cream recipe

2009-06-24T01:19:00.000-07:00

Rum & Raisin ice cream

PREPARING THE RAISINS

Dark raisins

1/2 cups (chopped)

Good quality rum

1/2 cup

Soak the chopped raisins in the rum overnight before using.

MAKING THE SUGAR SYRUP

Brown Sugar 1 + 1/2 cups

Water 1 cup

Rum 1/2 cup

Pour sugar and water into a pan and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer until all the sugar has melted completely.

Turn off fire. Add in 1/2 cup rum. Set aside to cool.

MAKING THE ICE CREAM

Whipping cream 350 ml Fresh milk 250 ml Sugar Syrup all of what was prepared earlier

Dark Raisins soaked in rum 1/2 cup + all the rum that it was soaking in

Pour all the ingredients into the ice cream maker's container. Mix well and taste before proceeding with the machine's instructions. Make certain that the mixture is sweet enough. You may also add more rum and adjust the alcohol level to what you desire. Turn on the ice cream maker according to instructions.

Note that alcohol requires a lower freezing temperature than water..... so do not be alarmed if your ice cream does not turn out thick and creamy as it normally would after the ice cream maker timer has stopped). It will solidify once you put it inside the freezer.

Spoon into individual serving containers and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

Makes 1.5 liters of ice cream

Blueberry ice cream recipe

2009-06-21T22:54:00.001-07:00

PREPARING THE BLUEBERRIES

Fresh blueberries

2 cups (roughly 450g)

Fresh squeezed lemon juice

from 1 lemon

Sugar

3/4 cup

Water

2 cups

Wash blueberries. Place them into a shallow pan. Put in all the other ingredients and bring to a boil. Lower flame and allow to simmer until all the sugar has melted, and some of the blueberries spilt open.

Pour into a bowl and allow to cool. Pour blueberry mixture into a blender and blend until smooth.

MAKING THE ICE CREAM

Fresh milk 200ml Whipping cream 350mls Sugar syrup 1 cup

Pour all ingredients into ice cream maker bucket. Add in blueberry mixture. Mix Well.

Taste the mixture. Add more sugar syrup accordingly.

Remember that it should taste slightly sweeter than what you think is ‘just right’.Or else once it is frozen, it will taste bland. Follow though with your ice cream makers instructions.

Spoon into individual serving containers, and chill at least 2 hours before serving.

You should temper the ice cream by allowing it to stand for 5 t0 10 minutes before eating. This will allow the full flavour our the ice cream to come through.

Makes 1.5 liters of ice cream.

What I have learned so far, about making ice cream...

2009-06-21T00:43:00.001-07:00

Wow! Sooooooooo many flavours to experiment with, and so little time.

That's how I am feeling at the moment.

I made an incredible blueberry ice cream yesterday night (above pic). All the premium ice cream brands available in the stores don't even come close to it! It's seriously out of this world! Just ask any of my friends and family who have already tasted it. : )

Eversince I got the ice cream maker, I have not once bought so much as one stick of Mat Cool, or a single tub of Haagen Daaz for the kids! I've been mixing up a storm of icy cold treats in the kitchen and the results have been truly rewarding.

The Kids are happy... because the freezer is now an Ice Cream Wonderland!

The Mom is happy... because she knows that the homemade ice cream in the freezer are all half the fat, half the sugar, half the guilt, and has zero preservatives.

(Plus she is also thrilled that she has sneakily found a way to get her kids to eat sour, high vitamin C fruits that they would normally never touch! )

Another big bonus point is that all my ice cream creations do not contain a single egg yolk!

Unless you are making sorbet or granita, most of the ice cream recipes call for at least 3 to 5 egg yolks. I can't begin to tell you how much I hate egg yolk! Just the smell of it is enough to make me gag. It really turns me off! Ewwwwwww.....

I am now at the point where I don't really need a recipe to follow anymore. It's second nature to me now. There are a few simple principles/rules that I have learned over the past 2 weeks. And once you know them too, you will also be able to come up with your own fabulous ice creams recipes. And here they are......

(1) Always use the freshest ingredients possible.

(2) Prepare a sugar syrup. Certain books tell you to use icing sugar. Some tell you to melt the sugar in together with the other ingredients. My advice is to prepare a large batch of sugar syrup and put it into the fridge. And use it to adjust the sweetness of your mixture. It will keep for up to a month. Using a sugar syrup will ensure that the dispersion of sugar is thorough and you won't bite into unmelted sugar crystals.

To make sugar syrup: Place 2 cups water : 3 cups castor sugar into a pot and boil at medium heat until all the sugar has dissolved completely. You can substitute the castor sugar with brown sugar for certain recipes. Brown sugar will impart a 'butterscotchy' taste to the ice cream.

Remember that you will need to make mixture slightly sweeter than what you would normally like. If not, once the ice cream is frozen, the taste will be bland and meaningless.

(3) Orange juice and Lemon juice can be used to 'thin out' a particularly thick fruit puree (ie: nangka, chempedak...). It also helps certain fruits from oxidizing and changing colour (ie. bananas, strawberries, etc).

(4) Use half cream & half milk, as a healthier alternative.

You can even substitute all of the whipping cream with milk. However, the finished product will not be as smooth, and will not scoop out properly. So I don't recommend doing that.

Certain flavours will scream out for more cream than milk (ie. strawberry, blueberry, etc). When this is the case, I use 3/4 cream and 1/4 milk.

Cream really is the magic ingredient when it comes to improving the taste, body, and texture... they don't call it 'ice cream' for nothing. ;)

(5) Chill the finished ice cream mixture for at least 1 to 2 hours, before proceeding with the ice cream maker manufacturer's instructions. The coldness of the mixture will improve the efficacy of the ice cream maker.

(6) The finished ice cream will have to be placed into the freezer for at least 2 hours before serving, or else it will be too soft. When you take the ice cream out to eat, temper it by allowing it to sit at room temperature for at least 5 to 10 minutes. This will make scooping it out of the container much easier. Plus, it will also allow the full flavour to really come bursting out!

Can you make ice cream without an ice cream maker?

Yes you can....... BUT it will take 4 to 5 hours if you are going to churn the mixture by hand.

The function of the ice cream machine is to constantly churn the milk & cream–making it thick, creamy, and smooth; and at the same time it prevents ice crystals from forming and destroying the texture of the ice cream. Hand churning is terribly tedious and tiring work. And the results will never be able to match that of an ice cream machine.

So? ... What are you waiting for?

GO and get yourself an ice cream machine quickly, and try out my recipes! Then, when you take your first bite, you'll completely be able to understand why I have gone totally nuts about ice cream! And I promise you. Your taste buds will settle for store-bought ice cream ever again.

Oh... and by the way.... I will post the recipe for my blueberry ice cream tomorrow. : D

Matcha ice cream recipe

2009-06-20T09:06:00.000-07:00

Matcha ice cream

Good Quality Matcha powder

3 to 4 tbs

Sugar syrup

1 cup (or to taste)

Fresh milk

200 ml

Whipping cream

300 ml

Vanilla essence

1 tsp

Pour the milk into a pan, add in matcha powder. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly until matcha powder dissolves completely. Turn off fire. Add in vanilla essence. Set aside to cool.

Pour mixture into the ice cream maker bucket, add in all other ingredients and chill in the fridge for at least an hour or two.

Taste the mixture before proceeding, and always remember that the mixture needs to be a bit sweeter than what you think is 'just right' – or it will end up tasting bland. With the Cuisinart ice cream maker, the timer is usually set for 1 hour. But if the ingredients are very cold, the time required may be shorter. I usually let the ice cream churn for about 50 minutes. By then the mixture is already creamy and smooth.

Spoon it into individual cups (with covers), or into ice cream trays. Chill at least 1.5 hours before serving.

Before eating the ice cream, temper it by allowing it to stand for 5 to 10 minutes. IT will scoop out beautifully then.

Makes 1.5 liters of ice cream

Strawberry ice cream recipe

2009-06-20T00:47:00.000-07:00

Strawberry

ice cream

Fresh strawberries

500g

Fresh squeezed orange juice

from 2 medium sized oranges

Sugar syrup

1 cup (or to taste)

Fresh milk

200 ml

Whipping cream

300 ml

Extra strawberries

2, cut into small pieces

Hull the strawberries (remove stems). Place into a blender together with the orange juice and whizz until mixture is smooth. Then and in sugar syrup, fresh milk and cream (if you like your ice cream really creamy, you use 400 ml cream to 100 ml milk instead). Blend until smooth. Pour mixture into the ice cream maker bucket and chill in the fridge for at least an hour or two.

Taste the mixture before proceeding. The strawberries could be sour, so add more sugar syrup if you think it is necessary. Always remember that the mixture needs to be a bit sweeter than what you think is 'just right' – or it will end up tasting bland.

With the Cuisineart ice cream maker, the timer is usually set for 1 hour. But if the ingredients are very cold, the time required may be shorter. I usually let the ice cream churn for about 50 minutes. By then the mixture is already creamy and smooth. 5 minutes before turning off the machine, add in the extra strawberries.

Spoon it into individual cups (with covers), or into ice cream trays. Chill at least 1.5 hours before serving.

When you take the ice cream out to eat, temper it by allowing it to stand for 5 to 10 minutes. This will release the full flavour of the fruit.

Makes 1.5 liters of ice cream

Passion fruit ice cream recipe

2009-06-19T05:24:00.001-07:00

Passion fruit

ice cream

Passionfruit

12 nos. (the ones with wrinkly skin are sweeter)

Fresh squeezed orange juice

from 4 oranges

Sugar syrup

1 cup (or to taste)

Fresh milk

200 ml

Whipping cream

250 ml

Cut passion fruit into halves. Scoop out the pulp and place inside a blender. Add in all the other ingredients. Blend until pulp is loosened and no longer in clumps.

Pour mixture into a glass or ceramic bow and chill inside the fridge for at least an hour or two.Do not put the mixture into a metal or aluminum container because the passion fruit is acidic and will react with the metal.

Pour chilled passionfruit mixture into the ice cream maker's container.

Taste the mixture before proceeding. Add more sugar syrup if you think it is necessary.
Always remember that the mixture needs to be a bit sweeter than what you think is 'just right' – or it will end up tasting bland.

Spoon it into individual cups (with covers), or into ice cream trays. Chill at least 1.5 hours before serving.

Makes 1.5 liters of ice cream

Dragon fruit ice cream recipe

2009-06-18T09:31:00.001-07:00

Dragon fruit

ice cream

Dragon Fruit (red variety)

1 large

Fresh squeezed orange juice

from 2 oranges

Sugar syrup

1 cup (or to taste)

Fresh milk

200 ml

Whipping cream

250 ml

Peel dragon fruit. Cut into a few pieces and place inside a blender. Add in all the other ingredients. Blend until smooth. Pour into a large bowl (or into the ice cream maker bucket), and chill inside the fridge for at least an hour or two before churning in the ice cream maker.

Taste the mixture with a clean spoon before proceeding. Add more sugar syrup if you think it is necessary.
I'm not a fan of very sweet desserts myself. But always remember that the mixture needs to be a bit sweeter than what you think is 'just right'. Because once it turns into ice cream, what was 'just right' before you popped it into the ice cream maker, may end up tasting 'not sweet enough' – it has happened to me a few times. ;' (

With the Cuisineart ice cream maker, the timer is usually set for 1 hour. But if the ingredients are very cold, the time required may be shorter. I usually let the ice cream churn for about 50 minutes. By then the mixture is already smooth and delicious! The colour of the ice cream is absolutely brilliant!

Spoon it into individual cups (with covers), or into ice cream trays. Chill at least 1.5 hours before serving. (Dragon fruit by itself doesn't really have a distinctive smell or taste. But when made into ice-cream.... it is truly a creamy, exotic treat!)

Makes 1.5 liters of ice cream

My Ice Cream Obsession

2009-06-10T08:01:00.000-07:00

Eversince I got the Cuisineart Ice cream, maker, I have gone absolutely ice-cream crazy. :" )

Have been experimenting everyday with all sorts of flavours. To date, I have made Peaches & Cream, Coconut, Strawberry sorbet, Strawberry & Cream, Nangka sorbet (yes!.... it sounds strange, but it actually tastes great!), passionfruit sorbet, Passionfruit & Cream.....

Tomorrow, I will test out Watermelon Sorbet, Cherry ice cream and Pear ice cream. :D

So far, I seriously love the ice cream machine!!!!! I never realised that ice cream was SO EASY to make! I just can't believe the ridiculous price I've been paying for Haagen Daaz all this while! The delicious cold treats I have been making for my family are healthier (ie: fresh fruits, less sugar, no preservatives) and tastier than anything a commercial ice cream company could ever produce! And the ice cream maker makes light work of it all!

The only issue I have with the Cuisineart is that the container makes only 1.5 liters each per session. I just wish they made a larger capacity container.

The basis of making ice cream is incredibly simple:

You need your base flavour – which is usually a fruit of some sort, a sugar syrup (which is a 1:1 ratio of water and castor sugar gently boiled till the sugar has completely melted) + water or juice (if you are making a sorbet) OR + milk or whipping cream (if you are making full-blown, sinfully-rich ice cream).

Measure out and chill all the ingredients into an ice cream maker. Allow the machine to churn (mix) it for 50 to 60 minutes... and Voila! You have your own fabulous home-made ice cream!

There are 2 types of ice cream machines. The simple 'freeze tub for 24 hours before using' kind which KENWOOD makes (RM280.00), or the Super Changgih-Manggih Cuisineart that has a built-in freezing unit (RM2,399.00 at ESH).

The constant churning (mixing) is what makes the ice cream so wonderfully creamy and smooth.

You can do this by hand.... but believe me. You don't want to. It would probably take up to 4 hours if you do it manually. NOT fun at all!

Hmmmmm..... need to go and check on my 2nd batch of Nangka sorbet now. : )

Will share some ice cream recipes with you all tomorrow!

2009-06-09T07:35:00.000-07:00

Oh dear....It's really difficult getting into work-mode when the kids are on school holidays. There are a million and one things I would rather do with my 2 boys – go swimming, catch butterflies, cuddle up in bed and watch a video.... but a lot of my cake bookings are made 2 weeks ahead. So I guess I can't escape. : P

I just bought a new ice-cream/sorbet maker... and that's another source of distraction for me at the moment. There are so many new flavours I want to try out! So far I've made Passionfruit & Orange, Jackfruit, Rambutan, Peaches & Cream, Strawberry & Cream.... My freezer is crammed full with tubs of ice cream!

Guess I'll definitely need to put in loads of payback-time on the treadmill very soon. LOL

Guess I have to start somewhere.....

2009-06-09T07:24:00.000-07:00

Okay. It's time to set up my own blog. I've been asked to do this by so many people so often...... But the very thought of having to sit down and figure my way through the learning process always seemed so daunting. ;' (

Well.... today I started with the first step. I signed up.

Now..... I just need to learn the ropes on blogging and posting my cake pics. Wish me luck!